Learn more about Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch, and the passionate team behind it all!

Mission

Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch is a no-kill rescue and sanctuary in the Napa Valley for companion and farmed animals in need. The nonprofit provides transitional and permanent shelter, adoption and rescue services, humane education, animal advocacy, and is committed to ending animal hunger, cruelty, and overpopulation.

JARR also collaborates with and acts as a liaison for various local animal rescue groups.

JARR's namesake, Jameson, a noble rescued boy who lived to the beautiful age of 14!

Their love of wine brought them together; their love of animals and desire to give back to their community made the vision of Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch a reality.

Monica Stevens

Co-Founder

Monica, a dedicated vegetarian since the young age of 19, knew very early in life that animal rescue would be her life's mission. Fast forward a few decades, and she's even more passionate about protecting, sheltering, and saving animals. She has combined her two greatest passions — fine wine and animal welfare — into one remarkable concept:Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch (JARR).

She blew into the Napa Valley by way of Chicago in 2006, bringing her background in luxury lifestyle public relations and hospitality to the Poetry Inn in Yountville. As fate (and the wine business) would have it, Monica was introduced to the love of her life, David Stevens. In 2009, Monica and David opened a very distinctive retail wine salon — 750 Wines in St. Helena, CA — which specializes in high-end, limited production boutique wineries. They are fortunate to share their love of fine wine and animals with the wine community, as well as the many clients of 750 WINES.

Monica is a rescue mom to two "Gentle Giant" Great Pyrenees dogs, Homer and Jethro, and one St. Bernard, Betsy, as well as a menagerie of foster animals. She's been known to travel outside the state in order to bring an animal into her happy home. The memory of their beloved dog Jameson, an adopted Great Pyrenees who lived to the age of 14, inspires the spirit and mission of JARR, which is named after him.

David Stevens

Co-Founder

David had the good sense to migrate west from the cold winters of Minot, North Dakota, arriving in San Francisco in 1975. After years in the restaurant business, he headed to St. Helena in order to direct the wine program at Tra Vigne and quickly built important bonds with winemakers and vintners. This seamlessly translated into the success of the local business that he and Monica own together, 750 Wines. These relationships blended music with wine when he became a bass player for the beloved Napa Valley rock 'n roll band, WRISTROCKET. He loves to talk about and recommend all kinds of music, and brings his enthusiasm for music, wine, and animal rescue to the WRISTROCKET performance at our annual fundraising event, WineaPAWlooza. David really became an animal lover upon first meeting Jameson, the gentle giant who JARR is named after. He continues to help Monica every day with the walking, clean-up, and caring for their big guys.

Board of Directors

Monica Stevens, Co-FounderDavid Stevens, Co-Founder

Katie Somple

President

Katie Somple is the founder and broker of St. Helena-based Lifestyle Properties/WineryX Real Estate, a dual-specialty real estate brokerage. Katie is also a Napa Valley community leader and volunteer in her spare time. A graduate of Leadership Napa Valley, Katie’s desire to serve the community stems from the credo “to whom much is given, much is required.” In addition to acting as Chair of the dynamic St. Helena Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, she serves on the Board of Napa Emergency Women’s Services, Napa County’s domestic violence and sexual assault prevention agency. Katie’s strengths include resource networking, fundraising, and budgets. Her love and reverence of animals push the boundaries of reason. Currently Katie is owned by Phoebe, age 4, and Mae Flower, age 8, both rescues.

Edie Kausch

Born and raised in the Bay Area, Edie remembers being terrified of animals as a child — it wasn't until she was a young adult that her relationship to animals began to change. While visiting a friend's home, their large Manx cat jumped up onto Edie's lap, settled down, and began to purr. She quickly realized she wasn't going to die from cat affection, and so began her ongoing love affair with many more animal companions that entered, saved, and enriched her life.

Four decades later, Edie is living a gypsy life caring for Napa Valley pets when their owners leave town on their travels. To help support this unusual lifestyle, she owns and manages a landscape design company. Among her clients are Clif Family Winery, Dancing Hares Winery, and Vineland Station. A highlighted achievement was bringing Lunafest, a women’s film festival, to the Napa Valley in 2009. Every year, the film festival has grown monumentally, making it a greatly anticipated annual event benefiting Napa Emergency Women's Services, Napa/Solano Girls On The Run, and The Breast Cancer Fund. As a longtime Napa Valley local, Edie can think of nothing better than to join forces with others in the area who protect and defend the natural world of plants and animals who teach us how to be more fully human.

Ashley Kassis

Secretary

Ashley learned the value of prowess from a young age: at 12, she marched up to Kelly Brothers, a specialist in asset management and a well-respected business reporter for several news stations, and convinced him to be an emcee for her mothers’ latest fundraising event. That dexterity has continued through her life in both personal and professional aspects.

Although she completed her first degree in Business Administration at the liberal arts college, St. Mary’s College of California, she attributes her current path in hospitality to the two years studying in Barcelona obtaining her degree in PR and Communications. While completing her thesis, she took an opportunity to build an event management company alongside a business broker with strong ties in the Barcelona hospitality world and her pathway was formed.

After her return to California and a two year stint developing the marketing initiatives for a mental health care facility, she was drawn back to the hospitality world and ran the events department for one of the most recognizable wine brands in the United States. There, she thrived, learning about winemaking, terroir, gastronomy, and the luxury world of Napa Valley.

With over 7 years’ experience in marketing and events, including 5+ years in the Napa Valley hospitality industry, Ashley flourishes in her fast paced little town of Napa and finds enjoyment in searching out the next special experience for her guests. Ashley also spends her days fostering animals through Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch, surviving off of smoothies and yoga, while trying to provide a little more sparkle to life through her valued friendships and family.

Elizabeth Hawkins

Treasurer

Elizabeth Hawkins is a Certified Professional Accountant for G&J Seiberlich & Co LLP in Napa and Calistoga where she serves a wide range of individuals and business including winery, construction, retail and not-for-profit throughout the Napa Valley. Elizabeth also serves as Vice-President/Treasurer of Mentis, which provides bilingual, professional mental health services throughout the county. She is Treasurer/Secretary to Napa Valley Support Services, an organization that provides employment, education and recreation services for developmentally disabled adults in Napa Valley. Elizabeth lives in Napa with her husband, two young boys, two rescue cats and one miniature Australian Shepherd. Growing up in the Valley and being a graduate of Leadership Napa Valley, she has strong ties to the community and believes in contributing her strengths to help Napa thrive.

Brenda Burke, Manager of Community Outreach & Strategic Partnerships

Like many others, Brenda Burke moved tothe Napa Valley to pursue a career in the wine industry. The universe had a slightly different plan and steered her to open Simplebliss Professional Body and Skincare Spa in 1991. Brenda has a knack of connecting with people and in 2007, she and Monica Stevens met and became fast friends, sharing an unparalleled passion for animals. When JARR was founded in 2014, it was no surprise when Monica invited Brenda to spearhead the JARR community outreach work that is so necessary in this community. We credit Brenda with saving the life of Annie, Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch’s first rescue dog, and she hasn't stopped sharing the importance of animal rescue ever since.

Brenda excels at finding new ways to engage the community and creating and refining programs to help keep animals healthy, safe, and with their human families as well as keep the Mission of JARR front and center. Brenda's first foray into community outreach work was her creation of JARR's monthly Pet Food Drive: Paws On Wheels. A partnership with Meals On Wheels Napa County, this program provides pet food every month, to Low-Income Families, Seniors Citizens, and the Homeless of Napa County.

If you are looking for a community project to help the animals, Brenda will surely create something special with you.

If she is not working within the community with JARR, you’ll find Brenda working her magic in her spa, or running or cycling the beautiful roads of the Napa Valley.

Deassa Binstock, Manager of Adoptions & Foster Care

While living in Washington state, Deassa rescued her first dog in 1999 — a sweet young Husky that had been tied up outdoors for most of its life. After finding him a great forever home, she decided to move back to her hometown of Napa. While attending vet tech school she rescued Kahi, a young Pitbull that had her ears cropped with a pair of scissors when she was 8 months old. Kahi taught her so much and put her on her current path. She’s been a Registered Veterinary Technician since 2004 — working six years at Frontier Pet Clinic, six years at Silverado Vet Clinic, and finally spending two years at the Napa County Shelter.

While volunteering with a local Animal Assisted Therapy group called LAPS, she met Albert Einstein, her first therapy dog (pictured). Currently, she has two dogs — a 5-year-old Pitbull/Boxer mix named Chassis, also a therapy dog, that she rescued off the streets of Oakland when he was just 4 weeks old, and Harper a fluffy 10-pound mixed breed that her grandma adopted. Deassa has been active with BadRap, a Pitbull advocacy group in Oakland, for the last 13 years. She has a passion for behavioral training, and a total soft spot for senior and Fospice animals. Her role at JARR is to oversee all the foster parents, foster animals, and adoptions.

Amanda Vollstedt, Community Animal Assistance Fund Manager

Having lived in Sonoma since the age of three, Amanda continues to reside in Sonoma with her daughter and two pets. She has worked in the Veterinary field for the past 10+ years at two top-rated hospitals in Sonoma. She adopted her first Pitbull within a month of working in the field. The sweet-natured dog was brought in as a stray with a multitude of medical issues, and due to be euthanized. After months of recovery, she became a healthy and friendly Pitbull ambassador who continues to spark change in the minds of people with a misguided view of the breed. Amanda also grew up loving horses and began riding at the age of eight. She has a strong passion for thoroughbreds, whom she would later rescue off the racetrack to retrain and find new loving homes. She’s excited to continue helping people and their pets thrive, working with JARR as the Emergency Fund Manager.

Julia Orr, Director of Communications

After being handed a flier on factory farming at a subway station in London, Julia became an animal advocate and committed to eating a plant-based diet. She has since worked as a communications specialist on many animal protection issues for clients such as Mercy For Animals, Showing Animals Respect and Kindness, Stop Animal Exploitation NOW! Beagle Freedom Project, Animal Justice Project, and the Farmed Animal Rights Movement.

Previous to following her passion for raising awareness for animals, Julia spent ten years at Walt Disney Studios working in the theatrical and animation divisions of the publicity department. During her tenure at Disney, Julia worked on some of the most successful box office releases such as three of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, Pixar films such as Finding Nemo, Ratatouille, Up and Cars, Hidalgo, Tangled, National Treasure, The Chronicles of Narnia and many more. At DDA Public Relations, a well-known international PR company, Julia oversaw publicity campaigns for clients and film releases worldwide.

Julia was one of the 2016 recipients of the "Lisa Shapiro Award for Unsung Vegan Hero" for her animal advocacy efforts, which included Trap/Neuter/Return of local feral cats and organizing campaigns against animal cruelty. As a life-long animal lover, Julia is currently caretaker to three mischievous cats, Sherpa (aka Mr. Grumpy), Assata, and Prince Harry. When not working to make a better world for all, Julia loves to travel, write, and find a great beach to read a good book.

Heather Leake, Volunteer Coordinator

“All creatures great ands small…” have been, well, since forever, a passion for Heather in her professional and personal life. She brings to her position as Jameson’s Volunteer Coordinator a rich and varied range of experience, combining strong interpersonal skills honed in the hospitality industry with a deep understanding of the value of the human-animal bond and its therapeutic promise.

Heather knows animals and how to create the best partnerships between animals and their humans, having trained hunter/jumpers, coached clients for national and international competitions, managed riding programs for international resorts, and provided equine therapy for disabled and at risk youth, veterans suffering PTSD, not to mention victims of abuse and trauma. And she knows people, having managed a variety of customer service functions in the hospitality industry around the globe, in addition to her therapeutic work.

Added to her varied and relevant career experiences, Heather studied history as an undergraduate, and completed graduate work in counseling and psychology. Not to mention having a certificate as a Level I Equine Specialist with the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association. Coupled with her on-the-job experiences, a perfect fit for building and sustaining a strong volunteer cadre at Jameson.

When not guiding the therapeutic connection between horses and humans in need, Heather has found time to foster dogs for California rescue groups, and became a “furever” family for her own rescue, a lively and engaging terrier by the name of Lila. Heather’s connection with Jameson started in 2015, as a volunteer ambassador and equine specialist. But her skills and expertise made her a perfect fit for coordinating our myriad volunteer people and opportunities, so we persuaded her to make the move to being our Volunteer Coordinator.

Bergen Verdu, Community Animal Assistance Fund Project Coordinator

A native of Sonoma, Bergen has never NOT been passionate about animal welfare. Phase one involved testing her parents’ patience with a variety of stray cats and dogs who clearly needed to be rescued. Phase two: time well spent in high school volunteering at an animal shelter, then on to full time work with a veterinary hospital, all the while helping to pull and re-home dogs from high-kill shelters in southern California. Then, Phase Three: solid experience with a pet shop, learning about nutrition, reconnecting with a veterinary hospital (this time in in Napa), and starting school to become a Registered Veterinary Technician. All of which give her just the right breadth and depth for her assignment as the Emergency Fund Project Coordinator for Jameson. And if that weren’t enough, Bergen is well versed in public outreach to promote community and individual actions that lead to healthy and happy companion animals in loving homes. And she has help! Her posse (and editorial board) includes: boyfriend Jake, dog LouSeal and cats Piper and Guapo.

Rachael Poer, Director of Development

A longtime resident of Napa Valley, Rachael first arrived in wine country in 1998 to pursue a culinary career. After working for several years as a chef, she transitioned to the related fields of event planning and management and led hospitality teams at several well-known wineries. With a desire to “do more” and give back in her own way, Rachael parlayed her big-picture organizational skills into directing high-profile fundraising galas in Napa Valley. As both an associate director and consultant, she has helped to raise millions of dollars for cutting-edge technologies for local hospitals.

Today, Rachael drives fundraising strategy and management for JARR. She has a passion for getting to know donors and understanding what they value. She places a particular emphasis on helping people execute their philanthropic goals by learning how to elevate their donor experience. Rachael manages all gift-giving for JARR, including annual giving, major gifts, and planned giving, the combination of which transcends the organization to increase JARR’s rescue services. In her personal life, Rachael spends her time devoted to her daughter and husband—and to their rescue terrier, Sydney, who has brought “so much more to our family than we have given her.”